Reference Material

Disclaimer, Copyright

The U.S.S. Mariner is in no way affiliated with, condoned or given any notice by the Seattle Mariners baseball team, who have their own website. Similarly, we have no association with the ownership group or any businesses related to the Mariners. All article text is written by the authors, all pictures are taken by the authors, who retain copyright to their works. No copying or reproduction of any content here, photographic or otherwise, is authorized. Please email us if you wish to reproduce our work.

Respect

Milton Bradley is going to rejoin the team tonight, and is in the line-up. He’s playing left field, and hitting sixth. Sweeney is DH’ing, and hitting fourth. This does not constitute anything like real change. So, fury, post one.

When Larry LaRue suggested last week that the Mariners were going to release Ken Griffey Jr if he didn’t retire, the organization’s most pointed response came from Jack Zduriencik:

“One thing Ken will always get is the respect and dignity he deserves in this game,” Zduriencik said. “And he’ll always get that from this organization and this community, and he deserves that.”

That has been the underlying reasoning given every time anyone defends Griffey’s place on the roster. Respect. He’s earned the right to go out on his own terms, we’re told. It would be disrespectful to ask him to retire, to place him on the disabled list, or to hit him anywhere other than fifth in the line-up, apparently. Those of us who think his presence on the roster is a huge problem that needs to be dealt with immediately aren’t showing the proper respect.

You know what? He’s not the only guy on the roster.

While the Mariners are respecting Ken Griffey Jr’s legacy by allowing him to tarnish it on a nightly basis, they are showing no respect for the rest of the team. Franklin Gutierrez, whose hard work has made him perhaps the best all around center fielder in the game, is seeing a prime season of his career flushed down the toilet. Cliff Lee, who was snatched from a contender after pitching in October, is seeing his talents wasted. Do they not deserve the respect of having major league caliber teammates? Is the work they put in all winter not worthy of the respect of having an organization deal with problems when they arise? What is respectful about asking the rest of the team to not just carry their own burdens, but compensate for the failures of a sacred cow?

While we’re all so busy respecting one man for what he did 15 years ago, we’re disrespecting the work of everyone else in the organization who is actually worthy of a job in 2010. The thousands of hours of preparation that went into this season by hundreds of individuals who receive paychecks for what they do now, not what they’ve done in the past… it’s all being undermined on a daily basis by the hero who can’t walk away. Doesn’t he owe them the respect they deserve?

Why is Respect Avenue a one way street?

Somewhere in the past few months, wires got crossed. Ken Griffey Jr has replaced the paying customer as the one that the organization is trying to please. In the process of respecting him, we’ve all been disrespected, being sold a product that isn’t worth the price of admission. Now, here we stand, with the season on the line, facing the prospect of four months of meaningless baseball, and Ken Griffey Jr is still on the team, Milton Bradley is still playing left field, and Mike Sweeney is hitting cleanup. When the team absolutely has to win a game, they’re still punting.

We’ve respected the hell out of him for 20 years. Now, it’s time for him to return the favor and GO AWAY. It’s time for the organization to respect the fans again and give us a team we can be proud of. We’re not proud of this roster. We hate this roster. We never want to see this roster again.

Ken Griffey Jr’s cup runneth over with respect. Rather than asking for more from all of us, he should use some and retire immediately. If he won’t do it on his own, then the organization needs to grow some balls and ask him to. If he declines, then they need to grow some bigger balls and put him on the 60 day disabled list. Every day he spends on the roster, you’re choosing to give the entire fanbase the finger in order to keep one man’s ego from being bruised.

It’s stupid. It’s time for this charade to end. No more respect. Go away, Jr.

Tags:

Comments

Idaho M, how exactly do you propose Dave goes about making these statements “to his face”? Everyone has their medium, and this blog is his. He has a right to say whatever he wants here, and frankly he’s dead on.

Wow, someone who rakes on someone on a blog asks the organization to grow some balls. I wonder if someone would make the same statements about Griffey directly to his face. Yes, Griffey is done. Everyone knows it except him. But taking cheap shots on a blog shows no class. Talk about not having balls.

Do you even know what a blog is? Welcome to the internet, bro.

fargomsfan on
May 19th, 2010 7:09 pm

I’ll start by saying I have all the respect for Griffey in the world. He was an irreplaceable part of my childhood. I’ll be the first one to give the man a standing ovation when he retires. However, the goal is to win TODAY with the best players on the field. The jobs of Wak and Z are to win TODAY, not 2000, not 1995, but today. Yes, there are more issues than Griffey-but it would be a start if he retired. Shoot, there would be even more butts in seats on retirement, with the speeches, jersey retirement, bobbleheads, etc…

I would have more respect for the Griffey Supporters if they displayed an average IQ higher than 12.

Idaho M on
May 19th, 2010 7:11 pm

Never said he didnt have the right to say whatever he wanted did I Griff. How about getting a media pass and getting right into the locker room and say this right to Griffeys face. Show some balls just like he is asking from the organization.

Last I checked Jr. isn’t the reason Chone Figgins is hitting .192. Hes not why Jose Lopez is hitting .225 with 1 HR. He is also not the reason Adrian Beltre didn’t come back..

He is not the guy who let Branyan go and brought in Kotchman hitting at .180. And he also isnt the reason Rob Johnson, the world’s worst hitter, and an awful defensive catcher to date.

Jr. also is not responsible for the losing of 12 games in the opponent’s final at bat.

Okay, we’ll stop there.

Ken Griffey Jr is responsible for the 79 outs he has made in 101 plate appearances and the 81.5% of his at bats that failed to result in a base hit. KGJ is not responsible for many of the team’s shortcomings, but he is certainly responsible for his, while retaining a role where hitting for significant production is very important.

Oh alright so accusing someone of taking cheap shots and having no balls doesn’t imply that you don’t think they have the right to do something. Gotchya.

ms1977 on
May 19th, 2010 7:14 pm

This team is run like a Japanese bank, which means whoever is making the decisions is not Z or Wak. They are merely the facemen who we love to pile on. Maybe it’s Ichiro, who so loves the ‘Tickler.’ Maybe it’s Armstrong…I don’t know. Regardless, I would love to know what’s going on behind the curtain. Wish they had Jim Bouton on the roster or something.

tomr on
May 19th, 2010 7:14 pm

Z put Jr on the team. Run Z out of Seattle let’s bring back Bavasi! Then we could all listen to Dave blackball the Mariners from Baltimore or wherever he lives some more.

Chris_From_Bothell on
May 19th, 2010 7:16 pm

No Chris..The root cause of all the problems was Bill Bavasi..

And who kept showing up during all those problem years? Who kept throwing money at this team in an endless parade of bobblehead nights and ’95 t-shirts? And what imagery does the organization always fall back on in its ads, its pre-game highlight reels?

The fans don’t demand anything better than 3 ALCS appearances, so that’s what they get.

juneau_fan on
May 19th, 2010 7:19 pm

Amazing to see so many new names! And they’re all ragging on Dave! I guess it takes having your childhood hero knocked to drive you all to post with such vitriol.

I can’t believe this. Yes, Jr. is hitting terrible right now, he is hitting poorly. Jeez, so is the rest of the team..

But see, I expect most of the other players to rebound. KG’s got nothing left. He’ll get a meatball right down the middle of the plate, put all his weight behind his stroke, and it barely makes the track. I don’t even see the point of putting him on the bench. He can’t even pitch hit. It’s not a Sweeney situation, with injuries keeping him off the field and keeping him out of the every day lineup. He has nothing left. He knows it, I see if on his face every time he’s heading back to the dugout. Why he doesn’t do anything about it, who knows.

I just have no idea what role the KG defenders see for him. This line-up is too damn thin to carry a guy so you all can relive your childhoods every time he comes up to the plate.

tomr on
May 19th, 2010 7:25 pm

…Ken Griffey Jr is responsible for the 79 outs he has made in 101 plate appearances and the 81.5% of his at bats that failed to result in a base hit.

Jr has had 7 percent of the AB’s of the team. To bad he doesn’t recieve only 7 percent of the blame.

I’m not defending Griffey. I just think he’s become an easy target and a scapegoat for a lot
of this team’s problems. Where are
the posts on Figgins or Lopez? And Dave clearly can’t
have a rational discussion about it which is exemplified by his last comment (you disagree with me so you’re stupid).

And the “those other players will bounce back”
argument does nothing for me. The Mariners are 11 games under .500 because (among other things) those players aren’t performing. Why are they getting a free pass?

tomr on
May 19th, 2010 7:36 pm

….i love Griffey Jr., but one time in the Dome he gave me the finger.

Maybe he thought you were Dave?

bubu on
May 19th, 2010 7:39 pm

Dave, Man, you’re cold. I agree that Griffey is not productive; however, is it his fault that the M’s decided to rely on him as a middle of the line up guy? Really, the M’s had no business going into the season relying on Griffey and Bradley to consistently drive in runs. Both these guys should have been role players who could get hot at some point and help the team. Counting on Griffey to be a run producer set him up for failure. Left handed pinch hitter should have been his role and that should have been explained to him when he was signed.

refusetolose on
May 19th, 2010 7:40 pm

Ha sorry Dingla, that’s not cool. He must have given Dave the finger once too, because Dave has it out for him.

To us with “an IQ of 12..” I at least think Junior should be on the team, I didn’t say he should be a starter or a 5th hitter every game. Youre bone to pick is with Wak then…

And Chris again..You say the fans kept supporting the team even when they sucked? Oh jeez, would you like all of the Mariner supporters to only come around when they are good? Be fair-weather fans?

Then you end up like the Pirates. And the Royals, pardon the fans for staying true even admist those awful times.

terry on
May 19th, 2010 7:59 pm

Why is Figgins given a free pass? Because he’s clearly better than his numbers from a true talent standpoint. What is the point of banging on a good decision who happens to be slumping?

There have been numerous posts dedicated to Lopez and why he’s less than ideal.

Jr is useless (and his signing was clearly a bad idea) and he takes up a roster spot that could otherwise be used to address some of the other issues with the roster.

Seriously, a team that wants to win badly simply doesn’t have Jr on its roster. That’s why Jr gets his own post.

I challenge anyone to justify Jr being on the roster and to clearly articulate the ways in which he makes the team more competitive. Lets hear the arguments….

terry on
May 19th, 2010 8:04 pm

I can’t believe this. Yes, Jr. is hitting terrible right now, he is hitting poorly. Jeez, so is the rest of the team..

Last I checked Jr. isn’t the reason Chone Figgins is hitting .192. Hes not why Jose Lopez is hitting .225 with 1 HR. He is also not the reason Adrian Beltre didn’t come back..

He is not the guy who let Branyan go and brought in Kotchman hitting at .180. And he also isnt the reason Rob Johnson, the world’s worst hitter, and an awful defensive catcher to date.

Jr. also is not responsible for the losing of 12 games in the opponent’s final at bat. TWELVE of 25 losses in the teams final at bat? Are you kidding me? Brandon League, who you revered Dave…hasn’t impressed me much.

David Aardsma walks leadoff batters in innings. Mark Lowe is on the DL..

Ken Griffey Jr. didn’t create all this. And you talk about respect Dave?? Why don’t you show some to the player who saved baseball in this city.

And apparently you live in Baltimore, I wonder if you ever even lived in Seattle in the first place.

Not a syllable of this actually addresses the argument.

Mental flatulence is actually more repugnant than the traditional bean-induced colon blabber.

kenshabby on
May 19th, 2010 8:26 pm

Neither Dave–nor any of us–should have to say these things to Junior’s face. Coming from us it wouldn’t have the proper effect. That’s why Ving Rhames should do it. See my previous post.

terry on
May 19th, 2010 8:48 pm

Never said he didnt have the right to say whatever he wanted did I Griff. How about getting a media pass and getting right into the locker room and say this right to Griffeys face. Show some balls just like he is asking from the organization.

Ya it’s funny how balless guys on the internet demand others to stone up in their blog posts…

money75 on
May 19th, 2010 8:48 pm

Thank you for writing this masterpiece of a blog.

I went to the USS Mariner event at Benaroya hall. I never had so much faith in this organization as that day.

All of that is gone now.

Jack Z is dead to me. He has assembled one of the worst teams in the history of this franchise. They might as well just have flushed 90 million dollars down the toilet.

I am embarassed to call myself a fan of this team, and will be boycotting attending games until the ownership shows that they are trying to win, and that they care about the fans.

jolp44@gmail.com on
May 19th, 2010 9:45 pm

God you’re a fast talking arrogant twit Cameron. Hopefully Griffey will do the right thing which would be to become a bench coach or whatever, but your arrogant, pompous self-righteousness is worse than Griffey’s performance on the field this year.

This post will be ‘moderated’ since USSMariner tolerates no opinions contrary to the company line, but to read so many whiny posts from your sycophants is truly nauseating. As late as last April, 2010 Z and Wakamatsu were heroes in your collective minds. Now they should be fired. Amazing.

As mentioned above, I know this post will be moderated but I have to say this is one lame, front-running site/blog. Enjoy your collective misery, you deserve exactly what you’re getting.

I’m one who definitely feels that you should show Griffey some respect, more than you would, say, Eric Byrnes, because of all he has done.

But the team respected him by signing him and playing him last year, when he was about replacement level. They respected him again by giving him another chance this year, even though replacement level was the best case for him. They respected him this year by giving him every chance, and chances beyond every reasonable chance, to prove that he could still play.

The respect has been shown, the debt is paid. Whatever respect they owed him, they don’t owe him anymore. Griffey should be offered the chance to go peacefully, but for the good of the team, he has to go.

A related note — Griffey got a big ovation tonight. Nice to see. I think a lot of fans know they won’t see him much longer.

Matt the Dragon on
May 19th, 2010 11:02 pm

I would have more respect for the Griffey Supporters if they displayed an averagea cumulative IQ higher than 12.

How about a bunch of people showing up with giant forks, like those wooden Tiki things, and waving them whenever Griffey bats? Might get on TV with those.

Rck74 on
May 19th, 2010 11:16 pm

Guti is a nice player. Perhaps the best overall center fielder in the league? C’mon. Not even close. Quit the ass kissing.

Boz on
May 19th, 2010 11:23 pm

I wonder what exactly is keeping Jr. from retiring. I was listening to the Jay Buhner interview on the local news and he was talking about how hard it was for him to retire. Griffey has been playing professional baseball for more than 20 years now. He has never seemed like the kind of person that would continue to hurt this team with his presence. I just wonder if he is having a hard time with the idea of what his life will be like not playing baseball. This is obviously something that every athlete that has played as long as Griffey has to confront eventually. Just a thought.

I’ll give you a hint – the center fielder that leads MLB in WAR since the start of the 2008 season… Franklin Gutierrez. Maybe, just maybe, I know what I’m talking about.

PackBob on
May 20th, 2010 1:03 am

Absolutely, 110%, right on the mark.

I really dislike having the pie of Griffey’s legacy twisted around in my face.

clandon on
May 20th, 2010 6:55 am

Now that the M’s season is effectively on cruise control, one of the few remaining elements of high drama is whether or not Griffey might be able to break out of his slump before the FO finally acquiesces on their position. How ironic is it that this April roster mistake is now May’s most interesting storyline?

downwarddog on
May 20th, 2010 7:48 am

Great idea. Quit going to the games. That’ll show ’em. Maybe they’ll cut payroll another 6 or 8 million in 2011 and you can keep bleating about coulda shoulda woulda. Typical Seattle “fans”: Jump on the bandwagon when they win. Jump off when they lose.

Idaho M on
May 20th, 2010 11:42 am

On this point I am in complete agreement with the blog host. I wouldnt trade Guti for any other centerfielder in baseball.

ima-zeliever on
May 20th, 2010 12:39 pm

I am becoming a fan of the Yankees.

No, I would still root for the M’s over the Yankees, but I am a fan of the Yankee philosophy: WIN. No player(s) are more important than that simple goal.

The Mariners on the other hand make it “complicated.” As a fan, I am tired of it. I think the problem is Chuck Armstrong. It is understandable for fans to have idolized players and have unreasonable emotional attachments to them. For the front office to act in this way is ridiculous. If this is true, the M’s will never win a World Series as long as Armstrong is the President or he learns that his job and everyone’s job in the organization is to win baseball games. How about instead of a call for Junior to go away, we deal with the real problem and that is that the M’s philosophy is wacked.

Holmes on
May 20th, 2010 3:55 pm

Dave – this is the stupidest thing you have ever written. Really though, fantastic job of singling out Jr and bashing him for 7 paragraphs. That’s a great way of showing ‘respect’ to the man who made all of us on here Seattle Mariners fans.

Really Dave, why crucify Griffey when our entire roster has been absolutely putrid? Griffey doesn’t even play everyday yet you rip him like it’s your job and you have nothing else to write about.

You can’t single out anyone else on the roster who is batting piss poor while playing everyday? Figgins? Lopez? Kotchman? SS? Moore/Johnson? Our roster isn’t getting it done. For you to bash Griffey and no one else makes no sense. How about the bullpen? How many times have we given games away this season. 10+. Yet all you can do is continue to trash Jr.

Say the Mariners didn’t have Jr on the roster this season… How many more games would this team have won at this point in the season?

This roster just doesn’t play well together Dave. Why don’t you start ripping Jack Z and criticize the bejesus out of him because he pretty much has blown the window of opportunity for this season, according to you and your USSM mates.

If you think that Dave hasn’t criticized anyone else this year for their poor performance, then you clearly haven’t been paying attention.

Matt Tuiasosopo, Sean White and Mike Sweeney would be joining Ken Griffey Jr. in being removed from the roster if Dave had his way. Rob Johnson has been routinely ridiculed for his inability to catch the baseball (and hit).

Some of the other unproductive players get more of a break because they play a defensive position everyday. Jose Lopez in particular has been phenomenal with the glove thus far, both with the eye and UZR. For a player whose only role on the team is to hit and they’re limiting his at-bats to RHP to give him the best chance to succeed, a lot is going to be expected.

This roster just doesn’t play well together Dave. Why don’t you start ripping Jack Z and criticize the bejesus out of him because he pretty much has blown the window of opportunity for this season, according to you and your USSM mates.

To add one more thing, while some members of the lineup have not produced thus far there is good reason to believe that they will by years end. The same can’t be said about Griffey. He wasn’t projected to be any good this year and has managed to be even worse than the most negative of projections. At 40 years old with bad knees platooning in a premium offensive position, it should be obvious to anyone why he needs to go.